


Festivities

by animaAdministrator



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Caliginous Romance | Kismesis, College AU, F/F, F/M, Flushed Romance | Matesprits, Gen, M/M, Pale Romance | Moirallegiance, winter holidays
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-01
Updated: 2013-12-05
Packaged: 2018-01-03 04:57:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1066025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/animaAdministrator/pseuds/animaAdministrator
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ten years after the trolls make contact with planet Earth, four friends attending college at one of the few multi-species campuses in America decide they want to throw a Christmas party. Shenanigans ensue</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. December 1st, 2013

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. Getting out/putting up decorations.

Rose Lalonde, standing in front of an open closet, realized quite suddenly that this was _not_ what she signed up for.

In front of her sat a mountain of decorations. A deluge — an abundance — a plethora. And at four o’clock in the morning, on what is quite literally the coldest day that New York City has ever seen, it was her job to hang them all up. 

In theory, this shouldn’t have been much of a problem. According to a text from her boss that Rose had received last night, she and one other employee were to come in early and hang up the festive multi-holiday decorations that Corporate had sent over a few days ago. From Vriska’s writing, Rose had assumed that the “decorations” consisted of posters for the front window and maybe a few yards of tinsel or streamers. There might even be some book-shaped puffs for the ceiling. Following that logic, she heartily agreed to the task — and only right this moment does she truly understand the grave severity of her miscalculations.

The only consolation she has right now is that, in theory, there should be someone else coming in that door very soon to help her out with this Herculean task. However, because Rose actually knows her coworkers, she suddenly feels a lurking suspicion that she’s going to be embarking on this journey alone.

Rose stifles a yawn (even though there is no one else around to reprimand her for her breach in etiquette). She had five hours before the store opens and Vriska walks through the door. She could probably afford to take a moment to walk outside and grab a coffee… or a tea… with caffeine. Lots and lots of caffeine.

Just as she turns to make for the exit, though, the building is filled with the distinctive sound of a door creaking on its hinges. Rose maneuvers expertly through the maze of bookshelves, quite relieved that there is going to be someone on her side after all.

Or, well.

Quite relieved until she sees who it is.

Taking up the entire doorway, horns almost scraping the top — in the entrance of Barnes and Noble stands the hugest jerkass that the world had ever seen. He’s wearing a long blue scarf of Doctor-esque proportions, and a very large coat over skinny jeans. There are two steaming cups of Starbucks in his hands, if the green logo plastered all over them is any indication. And he is smiling pleasantly — until he catches sight of Rose. Then, all pretenses drop in the mud and are never, ever recovered.

“Hello,” Rose says casually, leaning one hand on a nearby shelf.

Eridan Ampora puts down one cup of Starbucks, and takes a sip from the other.

“Mornin’.”

_What an asshole._

The silence stretches, longer than Rose thought it was even possible. But eventually the troll saunters right past her, all hips and douchebaggery, and over to the back closet. “Vris tells me it’s all back here,” he says, with liberal application of false indifference. “That true?”

“It is.”

He turns back around and smiles at her; a predatory smile, appropriate for his species’ status as _predators_. “In that case,” he says, “let’s get started, shall we?”

Rose walks over and picks up the second of Eridan’s coffees. She takes a big gulp of it, not cringing at all as the disgustingly salty liquid burns her tongue and rolls down her throat. (There was no way Eridan could have bought this specifically for Rose, he didn’t know she was coming — does that postmodern imbecile drink this flavor _normally_?) “I was just on my way out to find some refreshments,” she responds, “but seeing as you’ve so kindly taken care of that for me, I see no reason why we shouldn’t get started right now.” The expression on her face could freeze a meteor that just entered the Earth’s atmosphere.

Eridan opens the closet. Rose strolls over, right next to him, and ever-so-casually reaches for one of the circular globes that are probably to be placed on the counter. Eridan watches her warily, uncertain as to why she’s starting on the bottom instead of the top.

Why, if she’s not careful, she could pull the wrong thing out, and the whole Tower of Holiday Cheer would come crumbling down like so many bricks in a Jenga tower…

…Whoops.

Rose smiles, just as horribly as Eridan does, as the inflatable reindeer come down.


	2. December 2nd, 2013

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2\. Making Christmas cards.

“Where’s the guest list?”

“—Hmm?”

“The guest list,” Karkat repeats, sounding impatient. “Where is it?”

“Oh. Under here.” You shuffle around in your own mass of paper until you find the list in question, and hand it over.

Your name is Jade Harley, and you’re definitely not in love with Karkat Vantas.

You always arrange to do your tutoring sessions with Karkat in the café of Barnes and Noble, because one of your good friends works here and she’s usually able to net you a discount. You say ‘usually’, however, because when Eridan Ampora’s working the counter, you are given nothing but a dark stare. Sessions are usually two hours long, but you planned to stay here after to work on some of your own projects. Somehow, you actually managed to convince Karkat to stay late and help. (To quote him — “What the hell, I have nowhere else to be.”)

The cards weren’t just festive holiday greetings, of course. You, John and Dave were planning a Christmas party on the eve of the 24th — you had a venue picked out and everything, namely John’s house which is nearby — and, seeing as today is the second, the cards need to go quickly. It was probably your fault that they haven’t gone out before now, but hey. No point dwelling on the past, right?

“Jade,” says Karkat quietly.

You look up. 

He doesn’t want to meet your gaze — or can’t, perhaps. He focuses intensely on a woman reaching into a baby carriage as he hands you a folded slip of paper. Curious, you open the slip and read it. It’s in Karkat’s small-caps handwriting.

_“CORDIALLY_

_WHAT DOES THIS WORD MEAN?”_

You smile knowingly, write ‘with friendliness’ on the bottom with your green sparkle pen, and hand it back. Trolls came to Earth ten years ago, and though most of them who care to be are fairly fluent in at least one native Earth language, you know Karkat in particular has trouble sometimes. If he needs help with words or anything, he generally shoots you an email, presumably because he knows that you won’t go blabbing about his inability to use an online dictionary.

You kind of like it when he asks you for help, though. Watching him mentally argue with himself about it is hilarious. And strangely endearing. But you don’t notice that part, honest, because you’re definitely not in love with Karkat Vantas.


	3. December 15th, 2013

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 5\. Buying the Christmas tree.

Your name is Karkat Vantas, and you would like to state to the jury in your own defense that you _never planned to be doing this_.

It started with the cards. Completely innocent thing. Jade Harley — who you’d been getting to tutor you in English and programming, at a reduced fee because Alternian caegars aren’t worth shit in the Earth economy, and you didn’t have many of them to begin with — asked you to help her out with writing the invitations to the ‘Christmas party’ she and her friends John and Dave were planning, and since the idea of going back to your dorm and dealing with the bumbling druggie you bunk with didn’t sound like a very appealing proposition at the time, you agreed. 

And then Jade asked you to do another thing “for the festivities”. And another. And another.

And now it’s nine o’clock PM on December 15th, and you’re freezing your ass off in the middle of some stupid human farm, surrounded by rows and rows of thin, scraggly evergreen trees, and you’re expected to pick one out and buy it. All for Jade Motherfucking Harley. You don’t even like her that much — why did you agree in the first place? (You tell yourself it’s out of boredom, but that’s bullshit, and both you and your incompetent alternate personality know it.)

Fortunately, however, Jade isn’t the one dragging you through the lines and lines of small, sick-looking trees. It was Dave Strider, a human whose dorm room is across from yours. You never really talked before except for maybe a few minutes a day in the elevator, but you’d rather go shopping with him than the botanical maniac.

“Where’d that asshole go?” you ask impatiently, referring to the farmer who pointed you back here — and who you would need to consult once you find a tree. You grab a random branch and turn to face Dave. “I’m just going to buy this one so we can get out of here.”

Dave kicks a spruce’s trunk, presumably to test its stability. “It’s not that easy. John wants a certain shape,” he says.

“Then don’t you think _John_ should be doing this?”

“He’s busy. And if we don’t do it tonight all the good trees will be gone.” Dave walks into another row, disappearing between the branches.

“It’s a little late for that,” you say, staring at the barren wasteland of shoddy trees. “Serves you right. All the good trees are gone, and now you’re going to bring home a shitty half-dead tree for a shitty half-dead holiday.” You fold your arms petulantly and stand in the middle of the row.

There’s a long, long pause.

“You are one shit-ass liar.” 

“ _What_?” Your head snaps up, eyes wide (as they always get when you’re angry).

“Stop fooling yourself,” Dave continues. He walks out from behind a nearby evergreen, and you notice with alarm that he’s smiling wryly. “Because you’re not fooling anyone else. High school sociology, Karkat. Trolls had a holiday like this on Alternia, and I happen to know through insider sources that you used to _love_ it.”

Immediately, you know who Dave’s insider source was. _Terezi, you deceptive bitch._

That smackdown wasn’t enough for Dave, apparently. “And if you didn’t like that holiday, and you don’t like this one, then why did you come?”

You say nothing.

“Well?” He cups a hand to his ear, waiting for an answer.

You continue to say nothing.

Dave stares at you for a few seconds, and somehow the sunglasses make it look even worse. He continues to smile. Eventually, you can no longer bring yourself to meet his gaze, and begin to re-tie your scarf for an excuse to look away.

You hear him chuckling under his breath as he walks off to find the salesman.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can see, I'm going to be doing these out of order. They will be more or less chronological, and each ficlet will tie in to the same story. Some pairings will have more than one ficlet.
> 
> Forgive me; this is more or less the first time I've written a story for the primary purpose of shipping, so this series is kind of like my baby steps.


End file.
